Most landscapers recommend covering the area with a black plastic liner. It deprives the vegetation of sunlight and water, inhibiting growth and eventually killing anything underneath it. Since this area is in the front of our home, we decided to cover the plastic with small river rock. We estimate we will need 6.2 cubic yards, which equals 6 tons.
We brainstormed various ways to minimize the amount of labor involved in transporting that much rock from the driveway to the flower bed. The simplest and easiest is a small utility dump trailer for the garden tractor. Their starting price is about as much as the gravel. My husband balked at spending more money on garden tools, and we put off the decision.
